Bright sparks turn old circuits into beautiful insects

With so much e-waste clogging up our landfill sites, it’s nice to know that one group of people is using some of this to create some pretty awesome insect designs.

To put the amount of e-waste generated into context, the UN estimated recently that, in 2014, we threw away US$52bn-worth of valuable metals that are found in common electronic devices, but thanks to UK-based artist Julie Alice Chappell, we at least have some nice results from such waste.

Based in Portsmouth, the artist gathered up the remnants of circuit boards from discarded electronics to transform them into beautifully-coloured insects such as moths, beetles and butterflies in a series called simply, Computer Component Bugs.

Speaking to Permaculture, Chappell rather unsurprisingly said she created the series to raise the issue of e-waste: “The recycled bits of cultural refuse that are woven throughout my work represent a direct encounter with the excesses of modern living highlighting the dangers of planned obsolescence and e-waste in the environment.

“The work displays an aesthetic beauty whilst offering a socio-political discourse, attempting to reclaim waste and the destruction of the natural world, in the beauty of visual art.”

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